Goals for Adherence with Low-cost Incentives

Not Applicable

Active, not recruiting

• Conditions: HIV; ART
• Interventions: Behavioral: End of year 1 adherence prize drawing; Behavioral: Incentivization based on gradually increasing, externally chosen adherence goals; Behavioral: SMS motivational messages; Behavioral: SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing; Behavioral: Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance; Behavioral: End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing; Behavioral: Incentivization based on gradually increasing self-chosen adherence goals; Behavioral: Incentivization based on a fixed adherence goal

• Registration Number: NCT05378607
• Lead Sponsor: RAND

Brief Summary

GOALS is a three-year randomized control trial (RCT) aimed at testing the effectiveness of three incentive designs to improve the ART adherence of those in need of adherence support. Participants in the first treatment group (T1, n=140) will be eligible for a prize drawing every three months if they reach the adherence target set for them by the study team, gradually increasing from their baseline adherence towards 90% by the end of the year. Participants in the second treatment group (T2, n=140) will be eligible if they reach the adherence target they set for themselves (subject to reaching 90% at the end of year 1 and each target being at least as high as the previous one). Participants in the third treatment group will have a fixed adherence target of 90% and will be eligible for a prize drawing every three months if this target is reached. All treatment groups will receive weekly motivational messages and a reminder of the upcoming prize drawing. The control group (T4, n=140) will receive the usual standard of care offered by the hospital and weekly motivational messages. Primary outcomes measured using Wisepill devices are mean ART adherence and the fraction of clients with adherence of 90% or more. Secondary outcomes are viral suppression, the fraction of clients with treatment interruptions of 48hrs or more, and retention in care.

Detailed Description

Low ART adherence among youth living with HIV threatens positive treatment outcomes. Increasingly incentive interventions have targeted low adherence, yet little is known about how to best structure the incentives and associated eligibility criteria. A particular concern is that for those with low baseline performance, the often relatively high, fixed eligibility thresholds may be perceived as too difficult to reach and be demotivating for the most vulnerable. Our study tests a novel incentive design that permits even those with low initial adherence to qualify for incentives aimed at increasing ART adherence by allowing participants to win prizes for smaller subgoals that build towards a higher goal. This design is based on applications of behavioral economics' Prospect Theory to the psychological literature on goal setting and motivation, which suggests that distant goals can exert a demotivating effect on the individual compared to more proximal goals.

The study is separated into two parts. Study 1 will monitor ART adherence using Wisepill devices for three months among an expected 1,049 individuals aged 15-30 years who have been on ART for three or more months and have regular access to a mobile phone. Monitoring baseline adherence will ensure that individuals being randomized to the interventions in Study 2 are indeed those in need of adherence support, i.e. have low baseline mean adherence of less than 90%.

Study 2 will randomize an expected 560 participants with low adherence from Study 1 into one of four equal-sized intervention arms. In the three treatment arms, participants will be eligible for a prize drawing to win small amounts of mobile airtime of either 500, 5,000 or 10,000 Ugandan Shillings (approximately $0.15, $1.5 and $3) if they reach the adherence goal required in the respective treatment arm. The goals will be set as follows:

1. Assigned sub-goals: the study coordinator will choose an ART adherence target for the participant based on their baseline adherence and gradually increase the target every three months, working towards 90% adherence at the end of year 1.

2. Participatory sub-goals: the participant will choose their own adherence target every three months, working towards 90% adherence at the end of year 1.

3. Fixed goal: the study participant must reach a target adherence level of 90% every three months.

4. Control group: will receive the usual standard of care offered at Mildmay. All treatment groups will receive weekly motivational messages and a reminder of their upcoming prize drawing. Weekly SMS messages will help maintain contact with study participants and enable them to become accustomed to receiving messages from the study for potential remote prize drawings. In contrast, the control group will only receive the motivational portion of the text messages (without the reminders of the possibility of winning prizes) as an attention control due to the potential beneficial effects of the messages.

Year 1 of the three-year RCT will evaluate the relative effectiveness of the three incentive approaches for improving adherence. Participants in the three treatment arms will be eligible to enter an in-person or remote prize drawing for a mobile airtime reward every three months if they meet their target adherence. In-person prize drawings will be done if the date of the drawing coincides with the participants' regularly scheduled clinic visits; otherwise, they will be done remotely. Participants will also be eligible to enter a larger prize drawing at the end of year 1 if they reach 90% adherence. Year 2 will test the relative effectiveness of the interventions for maintaining at least 90% mean adherence. Participants will be eligible for a prize drawing every three months if they maintain 90% adherence and a larger prize drawing at the end of the year if viral suppression is attained. Participants that did not reach 90% adherence by the end of year 1 will be allocated to the treatment arm that showed the highest effectiveness in year 1. Follow-up surveys will be conducted every six months after enrolment into Study 2, and prize drawing surveys will be done at every prize drawing to understand cognitive and motivational factors that the intervention may influence. Year 3 will investigate the effectiveness of the three treatment arms on long-term adherence once incentives are removed. A cost-effectiveness analysis will also be performed to help determine the intervention design's potential for sustainability and scale-up.

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2022-04-18
• Study First Submitted: 2022-05-08
• Study First Submitted QC: 2022-05-13
• Study First Posted: 2022-05-18
• Status Verified: 2025-03
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-03-24
• Last Update Posted: 2025-03-27
• Primary Completion: 2027-02-11
• Study Completion: 2027-08-11

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 560

Inclusion Criteria

• If the participant is between 15 and 30 years of age (inclusive),
• has received ART from Mildmay for at least three months,
• exhibits Wisepill-measured adherence of under 90%,
• and has regular access to a mobile phone (at least five days per week)

Exclusion Criteria

• If the participant is not within the age range specified above,
• has not received ART from Mildmay for at least three months,
• cannot use a Wisepill device when taking ART medication,
• cannot follow the consenting procedures
• does not have regular access to a mobile phone (at least five days per week)
• or shows Wisepill-measured adherence of over 90%

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Participatory sub-goals	SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting self-chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on gradually increasing self-chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Fixed goal	Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting a fixed adherence goal of 90% in year 1 and maintaining this adherence level in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on a fixed adherence goal', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Externally assigned sub-goals	Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting externally chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing conditional on showing 90% adherence at the end of year 1 and viral suppression at the end of Year 2. This arm will receive the intervention 'Incentivization based on gradually increasing externally chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Externally assigned sub-goals	End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting externally chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing conditional on showing 90% adherence at the end of year 1 and viral suppression at the end of Year 2. This arm will receive the intervention 'Incentivization based on gradually increasing externally chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Participatory sub-goals	End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting self-chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on gradually increasing self-chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Fixed goal	SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting a fixed adherence goal of 90% in year 1 and maintaining this adherence level in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on a fixed adherence goal', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Fixed goal	End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting a fixed adherence goal of 90% in year 1 and maintaining this adherence level in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on a fixed adherence goal', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Externally assigned sub-goals	SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting externally chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing conditional on showing 90% adherence at the end of year 1 and viral suppression at the end of Year 2. This arm will receive the intervention 'Incentivization based on gradually increasing externally chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Participatory sub-goals	Incentivization based on gradually increasing self-chosen adherence goals	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting self-chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on gradually increasing self-chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Fixed goal	End of year 1 adherence prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting a fixed adherence goal of 90% in year 1 and maintaining this adherence level in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on a fixed adherence goal', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Externally assigned sub-goals	Incentivization based on gradually increasing, externally chosen adherence goals	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting externally chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing conditional on showing 90% adherence at the end of year 1 and viral suppression at the end of Year 2. This arm will receive the intervention 'Incentivization based on gradually increasing externally chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Externally assigned sub-goals	End of year 1 adherence prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting externally chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing conditional on showing 90% adherence at the end of year 1 and viral suppression at the end of Year 2. This arm will receive the intervention 'Incentivization based on gradually increasing externally chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Participatory sub-goals	End of year 1 adherence prize drawing	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting self-chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on gradually increasing self-chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Participatory sub-goals	Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting self-chosen subgoals in year 1 and maintaining 90% or more adherence in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on gradually increasing self-chosen adherence goals ', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Fixed goal	Incentivization based on a fixed adherence goal	Participants will be eligible for prize drawings every three months based on meeting a fixed adherence goal of 90% in year 1 and maintaining this adherence level in Year 2 as measured using a Wisepill device. In addition, there will be a larger prize drawing at the end of Years 1 and 2 that is conditional on showing 90% adherence and viral suppression, respectively. This arm will receive the intervention ' Incentivization based on a fixed adherence goal', 'Annual adherence prize drawing', 'SMS motivational messages + reminder of prize drawing', 'Year 2 re-allocation based on year 1 performance' and the intervention 'End of Year 2 viral suppression prize drawing.'
Control	SMS motivational messages	This arm will be provided with Mildmay's usual standard of care. Participants will not receive a prize drawing incentive based on adherence, but they will also be asked to use the Wisepill device and receive weekly motivational messages. This arm will receive the intervention ' SMS motivational messages '

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Mean adherence to ART in previous 12 months	Measured at 24 months	Wisepill devices monitor the date and time of all device openings to retrieve ART medication, allowing ART adherence to be tracked continuously on the Wisepill server. This will be coded as the number of ART doses taken / number of doses prescribed.
The fraction of clients with adherence of 90% or more	Measured at 24 months	Wisepill devices monitor the date and time of all openings of the device to retrieve ART medication allowing adherence to be tracked continuously through the Wisepill server. The fraction of clients with 90% adherence or more from the total number of clients will be monitored.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Fraction of clients with treatment interruptions of more than 48 hours	Measured at 36 months	Wisepill devices monitor the date and time of all openings of the device to retrieve ART medication, allowing the fraction of clients with treatment interruptions of more than 48 hours to be tracked continuously over the Wisepill server.
Suppressed viral load (viral load <=200 copies/ML)	Measured at 36 months	Viral load will be chart abstracted from clinic data. They are typically done once a year.
Retention in Care	Measured at 36 months	Retention in care will be chart abstracted from clinic data. First, we will use the binary definition from the Health Resources and Services Administration HIV/AIDS Bureau, which defines retention as at least 2 clinic visits separated by 90 days in the previous 12 months. Second, we will use the more detailed measure outlined by Lee et al. (2018) to create a variable that categorizes clients as having different levels of retention in care over the previous 12 months. This goes beyond the binary definition and provides more granular information about retention. We will define a client as fully retained in care if they attended all scheduled appointments over the previous 12 months (usually 4 or 5 total appointments). We will then create three different levels of care disengagement: missed one appointment but not more than 6 months without a visit, missed 2 appointments or 6-9 months without a visit, and missed 3 or more appointments or 9-12 months without a visit.
Mean adherence to ART in previous 12 months	Measured at 36 months	Wisepill devices monitor the date and time of all device openings to retrieve ART medication, allowing ART adherence to be tracked continuously on the Wisepill server. This will be coded as the number of ART doses taken / number of doses prescribed.
The fraction of clients with adherence of 90% or more	Measured at 36 months	Wisepill devices monitor the date and time of all openings of the device to retrieve ART medication allowing adherence to be tracked continuously through the Wisepill server. The fraction of clients with 90% adherence or more from the total number of clients will be monitored.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Mildmay Uganda; 🇺🇬 Kampala, Uganda